Skip to main content

Weekly Coffee News: Win an Aillio Bullet Roaster, New Importer Offices and More

Welcome to DCN’s Weekly Coffee News! Keep up with all the latest stories by subscribing to DCN’s twice-weekly newsletter, featuring breaking coffee industry news and fresh coffee job listings.

Do you have news to share? Contact us here.

Aillio_00164

The Aillio Bullet coffee roaster. DCN file photo.

Royal Coffee and Aillio Team Up for Roaster Raffle Supporting Grounds for Health

Oakland, California-based green coffee company Royal Coffee is running a $10 raffle through which one lucky winner will receive a brand-spanking-new Aillio Bullet coffee roaster. All proceeds are going to Grounds for Health, the nonprofit focused on cervical cancer prevention and screening programs in places where coffee is grown. Details are available here.

Green Coffee Supplier Ally Coffee Opening Trading Office in Melbourne

Green coffee trading company Ally Coffee is opening an office in Melbourne, Australia, in order to engage more closely with the Oceania and Asia markets. Green coffees will be available for spot purchases in Australia, New Zealand and Singapore, according to the company, which was founded in 2013 and is part of the Montesaro Tavares Group.

Rancilio Group Opens Office, Warehouse and Training Space in Spain

Italian coffee equipment manufacturing consortium Rancilio Group has opened a new office, brand showroom, warehouse and training facility just outside Barcelona, Spain, in the Les Grases industrial complex in Sant Feliu de Llobregat. The opening follows a new Rancilio Group branch in China, as well as new innovations in commercial and home espresso equipment for the specialty coffee industry.

Australian Police Find $122 Million of Drugs in Coffee Shipment from Panama

Australian federal police this week discovered illegal drugs with an estimated street value of approximately $182 million AUD ($122 million USD) inside a shipment of coffee beans from Panama to Melbourne. Authorities are investigating the matter after x-rays discovered 200 kilograms of methamphetamine and six kilograms of cocaine in the shipment.

World Coffee Research Identifies Four F1 Hybrids for Next Multiyear Trial Phase

Following seven years of evaluation, the nonprofit World Coffee Research has identified four F1 hybrid coffee varieties that will move on to a new pre-commercial trial phase. The next phase will involve six more years of testing and evaluation prior to any potential widespread commercial availability of new high-quality and disease-resistant varieties. Read more about F1 hybrids here.

Fundraiser Launched to Support Coffee and Dining Utensil Maker Umeshiso

Umeko Motoyoshi, the founder of rainbow-colored cupping spoons and chopsticks maker Umeshiso Coffee Supply, has launched a Gofundme campaign to support the launch of a line of forks and knives while supporting Motoyoshi and their staff. As of this writing, the campaign had raised more than $4,200 towards a $45,000 goal.

Pulitzer Center Story Focuses on Aging in the Colombian Coffee Workforce

A feature story from the Pulitzer Center last week is focused on the ongoing issue of aging in the coffee sector, with a particular focus on Colombia. The report leans largely on anecdotal evidence and first-person interviews with coffee farmers, farmworkers and younger Colombians who explain their disinterest in coffee farming. Here’s an excerpt:

Even coffee farm workers are leaving the plantations and migrating to other agricultural sectors in the region, such as the burgeoning avocado and citrus plantations (fueled by both global demand and a warming climate). According to several coffee farmers and their workers, these new plantations tend to offer salaries equal to or greater than those of coffee plantations and with less physical exertion.

Read the full story.

Oatly and Cafe Imports Become 2022 World Aeropress Championship Sponsors

The World Aeropress Championship has announced sponsorship commitments for the group’s 2022 competition season from oat milk maker Oatly and green coffee importer Cafe Imports. According to a WAC Instagram post, Cafe Imports will be hosting a trip for the WAC winner to the place from which the competition’s green coffee was sourced.

Bloom Coffee to Host First Ever Moroccan Aeropress Championship

Moroccan specialty coffee company Bloom Coffee is hosting the first ever Moroccan Aeropress Championship in Marrakesh on Saturday, Oct. 1. Event details here.

Hoffmann Family of Companies Rowland Coffee Roasters Distribution Deal with Smucker

The Hoffmann Family of Companies — owned by the billionaire Hoffmann family and comprising dozens of companies in the real estate, hospitality and local media sectors — has signed an exclusive service and distribution deal with the J.M. Smucker Company. The deal includes more than 1,400 current direct-store-delivery (DSD) clients of Rowland Coffee Roasters. Smucker acquired Rowland in 2011. The deal includes the physical assets of Rowland’s DSD business and includes delivery of the brands Café Bustelo and Pilon.

In Case You Missed It

Here are some of DCN’s top stories from the past week…

Mighty Peace Coffee

Coffee in Minova, on the shores of Lake Kivu. Photo by MNKF Creatives, courtesy of Mighty Peace Coffee.

Eight Questions Sustainability-Minded Roasters Should Ask Importers

While there are many moving pieces involved in getting coffee from one end of the supply stream to the other, I believe roasters occupy one of the most influential positions. It is their dollars, tastes and relationships that have an outsized impact on where the money flows… Read more

Oatly Offering $400K in Sustainability Grants to Small US Coffee Businesses

Designed for small business sustainability initiatives in the United States coffee industry, the grant program was launched last year with undisclosed award amounts going to seven different coffee companies, including names seen on these digital pages such as 1A Coffee in VermontThree Keys Coffee in Houston and Junior’s Roasted Coffee in Portland, OregonRead more

Single Cups Assemble at New York City’s Compilation Coffee Roasters

Following a concept created by two deeply experienced specialty coffee professionals, the roughly 275-square-foot shop gets right down to business with standing room only and an intense focus on single coffees done right… Read more

New York’s Jack’s Stir Brew Merges with Wine Bar Chain Vin Sur Vingt

Longtime New York coffee purveyor Jack’s Stir Brew has merged with independent New York wine bar chain Vin Sur Vingt (VSV) to form a new parent company called TenEleven Hospitality… Read more

From Brazil, the Bravo IT Seeks a Grinding Ovation

As the world’s largest coffee-producing country, Brazil is naturally a hub of innovation regarding techniques and equipment for coffee’s cultivation, harvesting and post-harvest processing. Yet the tools for roasting and brewing coffee continue to come mainly from abroad… Read more

Comment